㊗
Japanese “congratulations” button
Unicode: 3297
Description
Unicode Variation Selector for emoji presentation.
Group:
Symbols > alphanum
Status:
unqualified
Emotion:
Not an emoji itself; it's a non-spacing character that specifies the preceding character should be displayed with emoji presentation (colorful, graphical style) rather than text presentation (monochromatic, simple style).
Backstory
Introduced in Unicode 3.2 (2002) as part of the CJK Compatibility Ideographs Extension. However, its use as a variation selector for emoji was solidified with the introduction of the emoji set and its standardized handling to ensure consistent rendering across platforms.
Usage Examples
- Used internally, e.g., '1F496 FE0F' to ensure the sparkling heart emoji (💖) is displayed as a graphic emoji rather than a text character. Users don't type this directly.
Cultural Differences
Western culture:
Largely invisible to users; its function is technical and affects rendering.
East Asian culture:
Largely invisible to users; its function is technical and affects rendering.